Isaiah 43:16-21
16Thus says the Lord, who makes a way in the sea, a path in the mighty waters, 17who brings out chariot and horse, army and warrior; they lie down; they cannot rise; they are extinguished, quenched like a wick: 18Do not remember the former things or consider the things of old. 19 I am about to do a new thing; now it springs forth; do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. 20The wild animals will honor me, the jackals and the ostriches, for I give water in the wilderness, rivers in the desert, to give drink to my chosen people, 21the people whom I formed for myself so that they might declare my praise.
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Isaiah lived in a time of great unrest. (Sound familiar?) His nation had become divided literally into two nations, Israel in the north, and Judah in the south.
In these verses, God’s people are reminded of how he rescued the Israelites from the pursuit of the Egyptian chariots, parting the sea and making a path to safety.
Just as this example is given, the people are instructed not to remember the past, but to look ahead. Yes, they are still in the desert, but God promises to make a way through the dry wilderness, providing rivers to give drink to his chosen people. Why? So they can declare praise to God.
When all seems lost, a new thing, beyond our imagination, springs up, renewing hope for our futures.
Prayer: As we remember your faithful presence in our past, give us courage to look ahead, to things unseen, so that we can perceive what we couldn’t imagine; springs in our desert. May we ever declare your praise.
—Loey Nordsletten Soderstrom